Roeding Park cannons turned into scrap metal for WWII

Question: What is the history of the World War II tank that was at Roeding Park for many years?
– Jeff McConnell, Fresno

Answer: The story of the Roeding Park tank begins with three cannons from the 1800s.

The U.S. Army presented three cannons used in the Spanish-American War (1898-1901) to the park on Armistice Day (Veterans Day) in 1930. But during World War II, the Army retrieved the cannons to use as scrap metal.

After the war, Fresno Mayor Z.S. Leymel lobbied the war department, which in 1947 replaced the cannons with an M5 Stuart tank.

The tank was placed on display in the park north of the Belmont Avenue entrance and near the Cypress Pond.

A map of Roeding Regional Park on the city of Fresno’s Web site still marks the tank’s location, but it is no longer there. In 1991 the Fresno City Council donated the tank to the Central California Historical Military Museum at Eagle Field in Dos Palos.

Museum historian Jim Bertao said the lightly-armored tank was designed for reconnaissance, not tank-to-tank battle. After the museum acquired the tank, graffiti was scoured off and it was repainted — “olive drab, of course,” Bertao said.

Q: What is the history of the Fresno Pacific Towers building on Fulton Mall?
– Frances Gondek, Fowler

A: The 14-story Pacific Southwest Trust and Savings Bank at Fulton and Mariposa streets was completed in 1925. It was the most expensive and tallest building in Fresno for its time, replacing the four-story Hutchinson Building constructed in the 1880s.

Now called the Fresno Pacific Towers, much of the original Italian Renaissance-style interior remains, including the marble foyer and the bank vault.

The two-story former lobby with its original ornate ceiling tiles is now a ballroom. The former vault is used for parties and receptions. Several businesses occupy the lower floors, and the upper floors are being remodeled into residential lofts.

Q: For whom was Tarpey Elementary School named?
– Georgi Leonardo, Clovis

A: Tarpey Elementary School and the Tarpey Village subdivision were named for Michael Francis Tarpey, a pioneer Fresno County grape grower and vintner.

Tarpey, a native of County Mayo, Ireland, came to California in 1855. He planted his first vineyard in 1884 on 160 acres along Clovis Avenue between Gettysburg and Ashlan avenues. By 1920 he owned 1,360 acres around Tarpey Winery, which he built in 1912.

Tarpey founded the Fresno Irrigation District and was a state and national Democratic party leader.

Michael Tarpey died in 1925; his son, Arthur B. Tarpey, took over operation of the ranch and winery.

At least two biographical sources identify “M.F.” Tarpey as Malcolm Tarpey, but Malcolm was the name of Michael Tarpey’s grandson, who lived in the Bay Area.

The Tarpey Village subdivision opened in 1950. Tarpey Elementary School was built in 1959.